skip to nav
FIRST POSTED MARCH 11, 2009

remaining Tamils - almost a million have escaped the war and now live in the West - remain out of the Tiger's ranks.

This would mean ceasing to treat the 200,000 civilians still trapped in the war zone by the Tigers as sympathisers and therefore, fair game. It would mean ending the indiscriminate bombing which has killed an estimated 2,000 Tamil civilians and wounded 7,000 others, and which international aid staff have called "a campaign of ethnic cleansing".

It seems Sri Lanka has ‘given its security forces a green light to use ‘dirty’ tactics’

As a report released by Human Rights Watch in 2007 revealed: "Sri Lanka's government has been responsible for unlawful killings, enforced disappearances and other serious human rights violations since the resumption of major hostilities. It has also apparently given its security forces a green light to use 'dirty war' tactics".

In addition, it would mean halting the construction of 're-settlement villages' for refugees, which the United Nations has termed internment camps. It would mean ending the arrests and abductions of Tamils in the south, and the routine harassment of Tamil citizens at checkpoints in the capital.

Journalists demand the release of well-known Tamil newspaper editor Nadesapillai Vithyatharan
Journalists demand the release of well-known Tamil newspaper editor Nadesapillai Vithyatharan

It would also entail ending the assassinations and abductions of journalists: last week, Nadesapillai Vithyatharan, editor of two Tamil-language newspapers, was arrested by plainclothes police officers without a warrant. He is currently in detention where relatives say he has been badly beaten. In total, 16 journalists, most of them Tamils, have been killed in the last four years and 27 are still being held.

It would, in short, mean treating the Tamil population of Sri Lanka – as well as critics of the war - as full-ranking citizens of their own country, rather than intruders there on sufferance.

Until then, expect more suicide bombings. 

FIRST POSTED MARCH 11, 2009
Previous

Filed under: Sri Lanka, Tamil Tigers, Terrorism

Add to:

Comments

Hide comments

Unfortunately, the author is using LTTE false propaganda without doing proper research. Both HRW and ICRC has been either infiltrated by LTTE operatives or has been purchased. Seems far-fetched, but true. Do the research.

Posted by Jay de Silva at 9:00pm on March 11, 2009

The in-depth article drives a few pegs home. It is vital that the GOSL makes a serious effort to ensure sufficient autonomy for the Tamil people. The hardcore Sinhalese must understand that marginalising the Tamils once their bargaining power (the LTTE) is defeated militarily the innocent Tamils must be given equal rights just like all other citizens or else this war will be lost as sooner it is won. It will be timely to educate the Tamils of the attrocities of the LTTE and Prabakaran, and the futility of achieving a separate state on a small Island with the majority of Tamils un-willing to live in the so called Eelam. What will become of those tamils living in other parts of the island? Are they willing to go live in the separate state. No....most of them have been living for decades in harmony with the majority. The GOSL must have a referendum and make constitutional changes that will give a better status to the Tamils.

Posted by Nilamal at 12:19am on March 12, 2009

1.Even if the last Tiger is killed today, new tigers will be born depending on i.what has been going on and ii.what will be done by the government after the last tiger is killed. 2.Successive Sri lankan governments have been prepared to continue crushing the Tamils politically and economically(and thus socially and psychlogically too) by spending hundreds of billions of dollars which could have easily built up the whole of the country to a very high level of peace and prosperity for all. 3.Hence when viciousness goes out of the heads of the Sinhalese only there will be peace and prosperity for any and all.

Posted by puni selva at 7:49am on March 12, 2009

To get rid of a dangerous virus it has to be eradicated in whatever possible way. Similarly, the Brutal, Psychopathic, Genocidal LTTE Terrorism has to be eradicated, period. During the past few months, when the terrorists have been chased out from most of the Vanni jungles, there have been lots of incredible revelations of what LTTE have been doing during the CFA. They have been robbing the civilians of their fuel, food and fertilisers sent by the SL Govt and aid agencies and hiding and stockpiling them for their own purposes. Obviously with the help of Norwegians, NGOs, INGOs and other international agencies they have been building bomb factories, suicide belt factories, suicide submarines where power has been supplied by massive generators. Air conditioned luxury buildings constructed near some of these definitely indicate foreign help/advisors. Then there are air conditioned bunkets, swimming pools built for the luxury life of the "sole representatives" including imported pet dogs! - ALL THE WHILE there is no evidence of any development work to uplift their own Tamil civilians in spite of billions of Tsunami aid donated to Tamil "rehabilitation" organisations directly by many international organisations. The only facility the civilians got were TORTURE CAMPS! Although the "independent" journalists now clamour for access, it is questionable what they were doing during the CFA.

Posted by Wickrama at 11:26am on March 12, 2009

Jay De Silva: Saya "most of them have been living for decades in harmony with the majority..". Many people do this mistake. Do you know when SL got the independance, many sri lankans were living in UK and they were very friendly with English people. It does not mean that SL not deserved in independance. Tamils are fighting for the rights in the North East homeland.

Posted by ravi bopra at 5:15am on March 13, 2009

ravi bopra, The plain fact is there was no TAMIL HOMELAND in NorthEast Sri Lanka. Tamils in NorthEast Sri Lanka are simply remnants of Tamil invasions from Sothern India long time before. It is the LTTE Terrorist lie "Tamils are harassed by Sinhalese" that is exposed by the fact that majority of Tamils are living in harmony in Southern parts of Sri Lanka.

Posted by Wickrama at 7:33pm on March 13, 2009

The title and the conclusions clearly show how far the writer is biased towards Tamil tigers. It is true that on several occasions Tamils have been mal-treated by the Sri Lankan governments. But anybody who has been to Sri Lanka now would see that Tamils have equal rights as any other community in Sri Lanka. The often quoted statement of the army commander, which the government rejects as being misquoted, by no means shows the attitudes of the Sinhalese majority in Sri Lanka. There was a political party which propagated the concept (called Sihala Urumaya), which ended up getting much less votes than what BNP is getting in the UK. There was an ethnic cleansing in Sri Lanka, but that was not by the government, but by the tiger terrorists which gave a 24 hour deadline for Muslims in the Nothern province to leave or face death! The out of this world numbers quoted by the writer as war casualties tallies with the propaganda of tiger terrorists. It is very unlikely that there wouldn't be any civilian casualties in a war, but in Sri Lanka the casualties are far less than in Afghanistan and Iraq! About the 'harassement of Tamils in Colombo', please make a visit to Colombo before making such comments. In Colombo the security forces check both Sinhalese and Tamils and everbody else. But in London, only black youths are checked for carrying of knifes. In Sri Lanka, tigers have killed far more Tamil journalists than the government side.

Posted by Hof Vander at 3:51pm on March 15, 2009

Add comment

You must be signed into your user account to add a comment.

  Forgotten password?
 
  or create an account

sign up for the daily email

About the author

Julian West

has reported from Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, Sri Lanka, Iran and Nepal for both the Daily Telegraph and Sunday

... MORE

Also by this author

go back...page 2 of 2

News & Comment: News & Politics